State civil service: voiding illegal appointments.

The California Constitution establishes the State Personnel Board (board) and requires the board to, among other things, enforce the civil service statutes, prescribe probationary periods and classifications, adopt rules authorized by statute, and review disciplinary actions. Existing law establishes the Department of Human Resources (department) and provides that, subject to the requirements of the California Constitution, it succeeds to and is vested with the duties, purposes, responsibilities, and jurisdiction exercised by the board as its designee with respect to the board's administrative and ministerial functions. Existing law authorizes the department to declare a civil service appointment void from the beginning whenever the appointment of an employee has been made and accepted in good faith but where the appointment would not have been made but for some mistake of law or fact that if known to the parties would have rendered the appointment unlawful when made, if the action is taken within one year after the appointment. This bill would instead authorize the board, in accordance with its rules, to declare a civil service appointment void from the beginning whenever the appointment of an employee has been made and accepted in the absence of good faith.